The Ninja Game
by Arethusa Fellini
Summary: [AU] The cast of Naruto are in senior high school and have suddenly taken an interest in an online game, Ninja. Strong bonds are broken in favor of new ones... for the better, perhaps?
1. Tryout

**Disclaimer:** Naruto characters are owned by Masashi Kishomoto and not me.

**Chapter 1 Tryout**

It was her homeroom class, scheduled right after lunch, which might be the reason for her slight drowsiness. She ran a hand through her indigo hair, right down to the tip which usually resides on the middle of her back when untied. She rested her elbow on her desk that was situated on the back of the room while cupping her chin with her hand, her pale lavender eyes lazily looking around. Nothing special really, just a classroom full of students wearing the same outfit as she does – navy blue blazers with a white polo shirt underneath with black plaid skirts that reached to their knees for the girls and black slacks for the boys.

"Hamachi, Kazuki."

_H already? _Her head perked up, nervousness setting in at the thought of speaking up at the whole class, however short it is.

"Here."

"Hyuuga, Hinata."

_Hinata Hyuuga, the eye heiress is here! And then make it easier by saying it with one word… just one word, Hinata. One!_

"H-here." _Damn. _She mentally smacked her forehead, a hint of red appearing on her cheeks.

"Inuzuka, Kiba."

"HEEERRREE-_ow_!" Kiba suddenly put both hands on top of his head, massaging the part where a book had crashed. He looked behind his chair and glared. "WHAT THE _HELL_ WAS THAT FOR, INO?!"

A blonde girl whose hair was pony-tailed looked at him with distaste. "You don't have to raise both your arms and scream like a banshee just to let the teacher know you're there, stupid!" She lifted her chin defiantly, arching a brow at the brown-haired loud-mouth.

Hinata giggled softly with a hand covering her mouth. Her pale lavender eyes crinkled in amusement as she temporarily forgot about her social incapacity problem. Kiba tilted his head to the left, looking at her with his pair of brown, watery, puppy-dog eyes, a far cry from the menacing stare the blonde girl had received.

"What kind of a friend are you, Hinata? Laughing when your bestest friend gets hurt!" Kiba pouted dramatically.

At this statement, Hinata blushed while bowing her head down in embarrassment, her pointing fingers pushing against each other.

"AAHHHH –" Kiba semi-stood in alarm because of her action, stretching both arms towards the girl. "– I was just kidding, Hinata!"

"MR. INUZUKA!" A raven-haired woman stood a foot away from the front of Kiba's desk, her paper-filled hands at her sides, her blood-red eyes showing complete annoyance over the boy.

"Ahaha, Miss Yuhi!" Kiba's right hand was now slowly scratching the back of his neck in discomfort. Any student would have felt this this when faced by Kurenai Yuhi, homeroom (terror) teacher of Class 1-B.

Kurenai smirked. She just _loved_ being a teacher. "I have a gift for you Mr. Inuzuka, a welcome home present from your two-months worth of vacation," she said cattily as she handed him a small green paper.

Ino snickered behind Kiba, which invariably earned Kurenai's attention. She visibly gulped at her teacher's intimidating stare.

"Ah, Miss Yamanaka, how are you? I have something for you, too," Kurenai handed the blonde girl a similar paper from the one given to Kiba, much to the girl's chagrin. She turned her back on the girl, facing the class with unpleasant eyes, her right brow arching into an inverted check mark. "Anyone else wants detention?"

----

Hinata stood on a covered pathway, her back resting on one of the metal posts that lined it. Her uneasy eyes were focused on a large gilded gate, the main gate of the campus that led to the outside world.

_What am I supposed to do? Kiba isn't here and so is Shino. And he won't be here until next week. Cousin Neji's class won't be finished in three hours. Ino would sometimes hang out with me but she's in detention with Kiba. I-_

"I don't want to be alone."

For the past few years Hinata had learned to value friendship, seeing that she gets her strength by being with people she was close to, cared for. Mind you, she still couldn't handle a crowd, but two or three people together with her usually work best for her.

She sighed in frustration while kicking an abandoned eraser she found lying in the ground. She watched its progress as it bounced on the tiled path. The eraser stopped when it hit a shoe. A black leather shoe and, yes, someone was wearing it. She whipped her head up to see who it was but immediately wished she hadn't when a pair of black eyes met hers.

Not just anyone's black eyes, but Sasuke Uchiha's black eyes. Cold, cold, black eyes; lifeless – like those owned by an expensive porcelain doll… staring straight at you, staring straight _through_ you, yet completely impervious by what it sees.

She couldn't take her eyes off him. Even when his eyes narrowed slightly, her body just tensed up. Usually, she would have just looked away and hide behind either Kiba or Shino until he's gone but that clearly wasn't an option now. So what was different now? Why wasn't she hiding behind one of those metal posts? Honestly, she didn't know. What she did know was this was the first time Sasuke Uchiha looked at her while actually acknowledging her existence. That she was there, alive and breathing.

He was the first one to look away. He slid his hands into his pant pockets, his navy blue blazers creasing and hitching up a bit. He started to walk slowly away from her, opposite the direction she was facing, to the school gymnasium she supposed.

She let out her breath, much to her surprise. She didn't realize she was holding it throughout their staring match. Her heartbeat was faster than normal and her hands were fisted tightly, too. She was uneasy discovering many things she wasn't aware of while looking at those eyes devoid of any emotion. If she had been breaking into a cold sweat anyone who would see her would have thought she was having some sort of panic attack.

She let out another breath, this time a little shaky. She was just about to haul herself straight up when a blur of orange passed her.

"SASUKEEE!!" A blonde boy with spiky hair ran past her, a slim box in his right hand – a DVD box, Hinata deduced. The blonde boy suddenly skidded to a halt when he reached a few meters away from her and looked back. His eyes grew larger and a large grin erupted on his face.

"Oi! HINATA!" The blonde yelled, waving both his hands madly in the air so fast that she couldn't read what was written on the box he was holding – not that she was interested in knowing what the DVD contained. Okay, maybe a little.

"Naruto, you blockhead!" A pink-haired girl interrupted with her voice slightly raised. She stomped her way a few inches to where the blonde boy wearing an orange shirt with black jeans was standing. "You don't have to yell that loud when Hinata is _that _close to you, stupid!" She scolded with her fist shaking furiously in front of the boy. She faced Hinata. "I'm sorry, Hinata, if Naruto alarmed you. He is after all an idiot!" The pink-haired girl smiled sincerely at Hinata with her hands behind her back in a friendly pose.

Hinata blushed. She stole a glance towards the blonde then looked back again at the smiling girl. Make that a beautiful smiling girl.

Beautiful, intelligent, confident, and loved by the only person Hinata admired most – Naruto. Her eyes dimmed a little as she looked at the girl wearing a pink halter-top and a white skirt that ended an inch above her knees. She bowed her head, her bangs successfully covering her eyes as she stole a glance at the blonde boy whose left arm was currently scratching the back of his head in embarrassment but still having a large grin plastered on his face.

"I'm sorry, Hinata. I was just so glad to see you! Oh–" the boy's eyes grew larger, obviously remembering something. His head whipped on the direction of where he was heading previously. "SASUKE, YOU BASTARD! WAIT FOR ME, DAMN YOU!" He ran, not giving Hinata any backward glance.

A knot popped out of the pink-haired girl's temples. She sighed in defeat but looked at Hinata again. "I'm really sorry about Naruto, Hinata. He just gets too excited at times," she said with an apologetic smile.

"It's fine, Miss Sakura. I'm not really what Na- he went for anyway," Hinata said with a smile. She had her small hands waving in front of her, emphasizing that it was really fine – to a certain extent.

"I knew you'd understand, Hinata! And, please stop calling me Miss Sakura! It's not like we weren't classmates before. Well, see you!" Sakura waived and followed Naruto.

_Naruto. _Hinata watched both Naruto and Sakura's retreating back with sad eyes, wishing she was more forward. If she was then she would be there with them, more especially, with _him._

_Didn't Sakura say something about being friends? _She mentally groaned. _Okay, she said classmates but that could count, right? That means I have a right to be with them, at least. _She clenched her fists and took a deep breath, her way of strengthening her resolve. _I can do this._

She took a tentative step… and another… and another one after that. Until she was slowly working her way down the covered walk towards the school gymnasium.

----

Upon hearing Naruto screaming his name out loud _for the second time_, Sasuke finally stopped walking. He tilted his head sideways and back to see Naruto madly dashing towards him, a look of annoyance all over his face. He smirked. Leaning sideways onto one of the metal posts that lined the covered path, he deliberately set out to extend his leg on the tiled pathway.

Naruto, who wasn't expecting Sasuke to actually _stop_ for him, was unable to end his run that quickly as he desired because of his high momentum and the smooth, expensive tiled path. So, even though he tried his hardest to break his movement by the time he was on level with Sasuke, he was still skidding slowly to a halt. His feet connected with Sasuke's heel, making him topple over the ground. He yelped when the DVD box suddenly flew out of his hand.

Sasuke involuntarily grabbed the DVD box with his two hands when it flew towards him. With curiosity getting the better of him, he glanced at the black-themed box, quickly scanning the contents written on it. Deeming it unworthy of his interest after perusing it, he tossed it onto the unsuspecting Naruto, who was still busy trying to right himself after kissing the ground.

Naruto's eyes grew bigger as he saw the box fly towards him. "AAAHHH–" he screamed as he tried to save the box from dropping to the ground with fretful hands. The DVD box bounced precariously on his hands for a few times before it sat securely.

"–BASTARD," Naruto huffed, his finger pointing angrily at him. "Do you have any idea how much I paid for this thing?!" Naruto yelled once again at Sasuke.

Sasuke turned his back and walked away, completely ignoring Naruto.

----

Hinata stumbled, albeit walking at a very slow pace, when she was able to hear Naruto's yelling voice. She blushed at the stream of profanities he was angrily throwing at Sasuke. She watched in silence as Sakura, who finally got to them, went behind Naruto and delivered a blow to his head, earning him an egg-sized bump that had him near to tears. Sakura didn't seem to be satisfied with just delivering a blow to him. She proceeded to yell at him for talking to _her _Sasuke like that; that he was in no way ever going to act like a boss around Sasuke because he never would be above Sasuke – _ever_.

She really wished she could do that to Naruto. Not the part where Sakura delivered a blow on his head or the part where she yelled her head off on him, but the part where everything just happened naturally. She stopped walking when she deemed it safe for her presence to not get noticed. She proceeded to hide herself on one of the metal posts of the covered path. She stopped midway, remembering her resolve just a few minutes ago. She heaved a nervous sigh, wringing her hands together in uncertainty. She knew who was causing her indecision and it wasn't Naruto this time – it was the raven-haired boy whose back was facing Naruto and Sakura… Sasuke Uchiha.

She was pretty sure she was okay with Naruto and Sakura but she didn't take into account Sasuke's presence. She didn't know why she missed that vital information; the three were practically inseparable even if Sasuke studied in a different school – not that it was a problem since it was just a few blocks away from the school Naruto and Sakura go to.

She debated internally with herself whether or not she was going to push through with her goal. While she was still thinking of stepping to where the others were or just go back and wait for her cousin on the front gate, another thing registered on her mind – the grounds was silent.

She focused her eyes and saw Sasuke now facing Naruto and Sakura with a dark scowl, Sakura clenching her fists on her sides while facing Naruto, and Naruto was facing Sasuke with his arms crossed in front of him. And Naruto… Naruto was smiling. Smugly.

----

Sasuke had to give the blonde boy some credit. Naruto was stupid but he knew how to push just about everyone's button – self included. His scowl deepened, his hands clenching tightly inside his pant pockets.

"What –" he started through gritted teeth. "– did you say?" He finished with a death glare.

"When did you become deaf, Sasuke?"

"Naruto!" Sakura berated.

Naruto sighed loudly. "I said you're just afraid I'll beat you in this game, _Scaredy Cat_."

Silence met the group. Sasuke continued to glare at Naruto while he in return threw him a challenging look.

"Fine," Sasuke conceded after what seemed like an eternity of silence.

Sakura, who was holding her breath after Naruto's taunt, let out her breath rather audibly, relieved at the outcome.

"Really? Woohoo! Man, you are so gonna love 'Ninja'. It's been getting fantastic reviews!" Naruto made a jabbing motion with his hand, the one holding the DVD box. "Anyway, the server is gonna be restarting at 8:00 PM tonight since it finished its beta phase two days ago. There's a manual inside the box once you buy it. OH! And don't forget me and Sakura are gonna be picking Fire Country – it's the place where you're supposed to be loyal with. AAAANND don't forget to IM me or Sakura your handle so we can PM you in-game! Oh, and Shikamaru, Chouji, Gaa– HEY!" This as Sasuke took the DVD box from his outstretched hand and started to walk away. "WHAT THE HELL, SASUKE?! That's _my_ copy!"

"No, this is mine," Sasuke stated without glancing back at the two while tucking the box in his right arm. His tone brooked no argument.

Naruto tried to take the box from Sasuke's retreating back, opposite the direction he was originally heading for, while he shouted a mouthful of profanities once again. However, Sakura stopped him from doing so, successfully stopping his progress with her outstretched arms.

"Come on, Naruto. If you want Sasuke to play it, then just go buy yourself a new one."

"AAAHH! I'M GONNA BE BROKE!"

Sasuke walked away with a smirk, his hands going back to their home – his pant pockets. As he walked he came face-to-face with Hinata. Her face was flushed red and her fingers were pushing against each other. _That seems to be a trademark of hers. _He scowled as he remembered the words she had uttered while he was passing her by. He threw her a glare and he didn't stop glaring at her until he went past where she stood, looking back at him uncomfortably, rooted to the ground.

----

Neji, a second year student and cousin to the 'eye heiress', Hinata, sat on the back of one of the many cars owned by the Hyuuga empire. He sat on the rightmost seat while Hinata sat on his left side. He was looking out of the window, his right elbow sitting on the arm rest on his side, his chin resting on the back of his palm.

"Neji?"

He grunted in response, not looking at her as he flicked an errant strand of long, brown hair from his face with his hand.

"Um… I um–" she took a deep breath. "Can we stop at the c-computer shop near the mall?" She said in a small voice.

This time, Neji did look at her, his elegantly shaped brow raised in curiosity as he watched his cousin whose head was bowed down. "What for?"

"Um…" she fidgeted with her hands. "I-I saw a poster of a game plastered on their window and… and it – I want to try it out," she answered in an even smaller voice, a hint of red appearing on her cheeks.

"Hn." He signaled the driver to follow Hinata's request. He knew his cousin was lying. First of all, they didn't pass by the computer shop Hinata was referring to this morning, taking a different route to school to avoid the heavy traffic jam. Second, she was stammering – a trait she usually does when she was nervous – or hiding something. It must have something to do with that Naruto guy he saw with her when he got out of the school building. He decided not to pursue it – for the time being.

"I– thank you, Neji."

----

That night, Hinata turned on her personal computer. Having already installed the game when she got back home a few hours, she just clicked on the desktop shortcut with the 'Ninja' caption. She waited for the game to load, staring at a digital drawing of boys and girls wearing forehead protectors with strange symbols on them.

**Author's Notes**

This is my first fan fiction with canon characters, so please bear with me if I don't get their personalities, descriptions, and whatnots right. I am open to corrections regarding these, especially grammatical errors, but I'm telling this now – I am not open to suggestions plot-wise. Suggestions for formatting and grammar are graciously accepted.

Anyway, thank you for viewing. Tell me what you think of this chapter by dropping a review.


	2. Step into the Game

**Disclaimer:** Naruto characters are owned by Masashi Kishomoto and not me.

**Chapter 2 Step into the Game**

Hinata was currently having the problem of thinking up names for her character. She didn't want to use 'Sunshine', that was just too trite. 'Lavender' she thought was a dead giveaway – for her and all those who are close to her of course. After a few minutes of silent pondering, she finally settled for a simple name – Sol. She gave her character a waist-length dark blue hair, almost black in fact, and a pair of violet eyes. She made it petite with a very slender build. She blushed at the skimpy outfits available for use so she opted for the ones that covered her character's body – a brown coat with a pair of blue pants that reached halfway down her knees. She clicked on the OK button to finalize her character.

She settled back on her seat to and checked the time beside her desktop computer. _8:06 PM._ She returned her gaze to the monitor and was mildly disappointed to see there were a lot more things she needed to get to do before she could play the game itself.

----

"AAHHH, that personality and career test just took so long! Do they even want us to play this game?!" Naruto wailed in frustration while he navigated through a village with his mouse, looking for the NPC designated to him by the pop-up box that prompted after he finished taking the test.

"MORON! You're the one who suggested we play this game. So bear it already! Didn't you say something about Sai coming with us?" Sakura asked referring to a friend of theirs whose features faintly resembled that of Sasuke's. She turned her chair to her left, to where Naruto was sitting beside her. "And Sasuke! You said Sasuke was going to come, too!" She complained, moving her computer chair a little away from Naruto and nearer to her monitor. She clicked randomly at the radio buttons in front of her, not bothering to read at the questions anymore due to her frustration.

"Well, I did send an SMS to Sai. I told him to come here in the café by 7:50 PM so that we could register him and stuff before the servers reopened. I guess he won't be coming since it's already 8:23 PM. And Sasuke…" His face showed his disappointment. "…Sasuke's being a bastard as usual!" He clicked on an NPC that was wearing a green vest along with different green-colored outfit and read the dialog with unusual concentration.

"I'm sorry." Sakura was now facing Naruto once again, this time without anger, her hands squeezed between her thighs.

"Eh?" He swiveled his chair to face Sakura. He was distressed to see Sakura looking so guilty. "Hey, come on, Sakura! It's not your fault they're not here, you know!" He waved both his hands in front of him, in denial of Sakura's words.

"I know how hard you're trying to make Sasuke happy – always trying to make him forget his problems. And what do I do… just keep on complaining! You're a great friend, Naruto. I'm jealous. So jealous, in fact, that I'm starting to think you're going to get him for yourself before I do!"

"Wha–" Naruto paled at the insinuation Sakura was throwing, his eyes growing large in disgust. "Eeww! Sakura! I'm not – I AM NOT–"

Sakura emitted a loud laugh after this, her hands clenching her stomach in amusement. "You should have seen your face, Naruto! AHAHA!"

"That's not funny," he said, finally relaxing. However, he made a play of pouting his lips and crossing his arms in front of him accompanied by a huff.

Sakura was trying to smother her laugh, happier than she was a few minutes ago. "So, what was your character's name again?"

"imnotgay."

"Blockhead."

----

Hinata, after talking to the designated NPC, was now reading through a long text explaining her status. She had just finished the personality and career test, including the _Genin_ Exam which consist her fighting black-clad enemies that spawned every few seconds in front of her plus that accuracy test that had her throwing weird-shaped knives, which the game informed were called _kunai_, on a target depending on the projection and strength she set. Her information read:

Rank: Genin  
Allegiance: Fire Country – Konohakagure  
Intelligence: 92  
Strength: 68  
Stamina: 62  
Taijutsu: 4.0  
Ninjutsu: 3.0  
Genjutsu: 2.5  
Kekkei Genkai: You are eligible for a kekkei genkai. Click here to choose one.  
Special Jutsu: None  
Organization: None  
Occupation: None

_Jutsu? Kekkei genkai? _Her brows were furrowed in confusion.She consulted the game manual that was lying on the desk. _Bloodline limit? That still doesn't make any sense._ She sighed. She clicked on it to see only one available choice: _Byakugan._ She read through the description that stated what it did and decided to take it. She noticed that her special _jutsu_ changed from none to _Jyuuken_. She also noticed that her character's eye changed from violet to a paler one – like her eyes. _Now she looks almost like me._ She thought that the resemblance to her self would have alarmed her, but it didn't.

She once again consulted the clock. _8:33 PM. Now what? I guess I can go look for Naruto already. I hope he's here. _She didn't know how she was supposed to find him, she only had an inkling of an idea what his handle was, but she had to try.

----

Sasuke was on his bed, idly plucking the strings of his electric guitar with his hands, his back on the headboard, and one leg stretched up while the other was bent up. He was looking at a silver laptop on his bed which was currently turned on and facing him. He was staring at the time which currently read 8:17 PM.

"_I don't want to be alone."_

The Hyuuga's words echoed in Sasuke's mind, unbidden. His hold on the guitar's neck tightened imperceptibly and his mouth clamped tightly together. Unwanted memories of his past swamped his mind. His parent's funeral… the loss of everything familiar around him…

_All because of–_

He mentally shook his head to rid him of his dark thoughts. He wasn't prepared to admit how much _that girl's _words have affected him. He already has his plate full with his older brother's betrayal of his own family… he shook his head – this time for real, as he once again tried to rid himself of thoughts best well-hidden.

His gaze went back to the laptop to check out the time. He was mildly surprised that it was 8:32 PM already – not at the time, but at how long he was zoned out on the thoughts he always tried to suppress. He had to do something if he wanted to avoid his current condition. He eyed with distaste the DVD box lying on his study table. He had installed its contents in his personal laptop after getting home.

He set aside his guitar and leaned forward towards his laptop. He had to busy himself if he wanted to divert his attention but he didn't want to face Naruto with his pathetic attempts at making him forget things that are impossible to set aside. Just seeing Naruto with his happy-go-lucky attitude made him remember… not the other way around. He decided to choose the lesser evil – which was to play the damn game. Besides, Naruto didn't say anything about actually meeting him and Sakura.

----

Hinata was roaming around aimlessly on the village of Konoha until she ended up on an opened large gate attached to an equally large metallic fence that circled a dense area of trees when she consulted her virtual map. The place looked quite dangerous but her search for Naruto around the safe areas of the village grounds proved fruitless, so there was a possibility that he was inside. She was just about to head that way when someone ran past her. The player's name read Helix.

Sol: Neji?

She typed in, knowing her cousin's attachment to that name. The player ran back to where she was; now facing hers.

Sol: that you?

She waited for a few seconds. The player didn't reply. It just stood there stationary. She began to think she was wrong.

Sol: sorry

She clicked on the gate to make her character walk there.

Helix: how'd you chat?  
Helix: oh

Hinata was stumped.

Sol: huh?  
Helix: it's me  
Helix: sorry didn't know you had to press enter first so you can chat  
Sol: i see!  
Helix: how'd you know?  
Sol: the manual  
Helix: ok  
Helix: we look the same

Hinata took a closer look at her cousin's character. His character's hair was as long as hers, except his was brown and hers a dark blue and he was right, they had the same eyes.

Sol: byakugan?  
Helix: yeah  
Helix: i had 2 choices, byakugan or sharingan  
Helix: but i had a higher taijutsu mark so i chose this  
Sol: i see

She didn't bother to say that she had no idea what those two were.

Sol: how'd you run?  
Helix: hit r  
You can now run.  
You can now walk.  
You can now run.  
Sol: oh  
Sol: the manual?  
Helix: no, i pressed everything  
Sol: oh  
Helix: gtg  
Helix: your dad messaged me to pick him up  
Sol: oh yes the party  
Helix: yes  
Helix: bye

And that was that… she was alone once again. She sighed. She wasn't going to like this game much if she'd end up alone every once in a while. She decided to invite Kiba and Shino to play the game with her.

She was about to enter the gate once again when another person went past her, Venganza written on top of the male player's head. The player, like Neji, went back to where she was but since she was running towards the gate, he didn't get to her. She went inside and a loading screen immediately prompted upon her entry. By the time she got inside, she was surprised to see the player named Venganza in there already with her. She decided to ignore him, opting to move through the darkened forest. However, the player seemed to trail behind her. She tried making a turn, and so did he. She stopped.

Sol: um…  
Sol: are you following me?

Silence met her. She immediately thought about Neji's predicament just a few minutes ago.

Sol: try hitting the return key  
Venganza: thanks  
Sol: no prob  
Venganza: do you know where the NPC you're supposed to talk to after the tests?  
Sol: um... yes  
Venganza: can you lead me there? if it's not a bother  
Sol: sure  
Sol: and it's no bother  
Venganza: thanks

They walked in comfortable silence as she led her to the now busy streets of the village. There were now quite a number of players running around the streets – as opposed to almost nothing some minutes ago.

From Venganza: switch to pm  
Sol: huh?  
From Venganza: the 'Private' tab beside the chat box  
To Venganza: oh  
From Venganza: so you won't get confused with the other chatters  
To Venganza: good thinking

She smiled at the guy's thoughtfulness, feeling better all of a sudden even if she hadn't seen Naruto. They shared idle but interesting chit-chat as they navigated through the map. Soon they reached their destination. Venganza had asked her to wait for him while he spoke with the NPC. Hinata, who was unwilling to be without company again if she left, complied.

----

"Gah – I'm gonna kick Sasuke's ass tomorrow," Naruto declared as he tried another combination of the word 'avenger' on his keyboard.

"There's a very large probability that he didn't use that particular name, Naruto. Besides, you're just wasting money if you keep on doing that. I'm now a level 3 g_enin_."

"He always uses that handle. And if you've cared to help me tracking down the bastard, we'd still be the same level."

A knot erupted on Sakura's temples. "Didn't you tell me to leave all of it to you?" She asked through gritted teeth. _Damn Naruto. He was the one who told me to play this thing. Sasuke even said he'd play it. _

Naruto decided to back down when he sensed Sakura's suppressed anger. "Ahaha," Naruto laughed weakly. "I was kidding. I was just jealous you have a stronger character than mine!"

"Hmp."

"Ehehe, what time did you say we had to leave here?"

"9:00 PM," she answered, her eyes moving back to the monitor in front of her. A black-clad ninja spawned in front of her so she proceeded to attack it.

"That early?" He went beside Sakura, attacking the black-clad ninja she was fighting with a couple of shuriken.

"I have to be home by ten. Besides, we have band practice tomorrow."

"I forgot about that. Then I guess I can kick Sasuke _and _Sai's butt tomorrow!"

Sakura rolled her eyes in response.

----

From Venganza: what's this kekkei genkai?  
To Venganza: it says it's a bloodline limit  
To Venganza: dunno exactly what that means  
From Venganza: do you have one?  
To Venganza: yes  
To Venganza: byakugan  
To Venganza: it changed my eye color to this pale lavender color  
From Venganza: i see  
From Venganza: i chose sharingan  
To Venganza: i don't see any change  
From Venganza: me neither

She smiled amusedly at this. Venganza invited her to go back to the forest to try their skills to which she accepted – party invite included. However, when they got there to try it out, they died when one of the monstrous flora attacked them with one hit.

To Venganza: lol  
To Venganza: um… i don't think we're supposed to be here yet  
From Venganza: i must agree

She laughed out loud at this. The two were still lying on the ground – dead. None bothered to spawn back to the village. She was having more fun talking to him than the game at this point.

From Venganza: hey  
From Venganza: i have to go now  
From Venganza: it's almost 10 and i have an early appointment tomorrow  
To Venganza: what kind?  
From Venganza: band practice  
To Venganza: i see. ok then i guess it's goodnight  
From Venganza: will you be OL tomorrow?

Her heart leapt at this.

To Venganza: yes  
From Venganza: good. bye then.  
To Venganza: bye

_I'm looking forward to it._

**Author's Notes**

Thank you for viewing and for the previous reviews. Suggestions have also been noted and acted upon, thank you for that as well. Tell me what you think of this chapter by dropping a review.

By the way, if you are an anonymous reviewer, please leave your email so I may be able to correspond with you.


	3. Preparation

**Disclaimer:** Naruto characters are owned by Masashi Kishomoto and not me.

**Chapter 3 Preparation**

"Oi, Bastard! Where the hell were you last night?"

Sasuke went inside the studio, going past the blonde boy wearing another of his orange shirts without taking a glance at him. He walked over the left side of the small studio, slinging a black guitar case over his head and down onto the floor, opening the zip afterwards.

"OI SASUKE! I'm talking to you!" Naruto goes over to where Sasuke was whose back was facing him, and raised an accusatory finger on his path.

"Naruto!" Sakura entered the small studio, slamming a hard fist onto the blonde boy's head. "Don't talk so rudely to my Sasuke!" She ignored Naruto's yelp of pain and proceeded to focus her gaze onto Sasuke. Hearts replaced her eyes as she looked at her object of extreme affection. "Hi Sasuke!"

"Sakura! Why can't you be nice to me for a change?"

"Are hags capable of that kind of trait?" A lanky, raven-haired man behind Sakura remarked. He leant on the door of the studio with his hands crossed in front of him. He had a black guitar case suspended on his back.

Knots appeared on Sakura's temples as she faced the raven-haired man, her features contorted in suppressed anger. "SAI!" She shouted rather loudly on an otherwise cramped room, her fisted hands shaking threateningly in front of her.

"Good morning to you, too," he said while ignoring her outburst. He entered the studio to bring his bag down beside the drum set on the center of the room.

"Oi, Sai. Why weren't you replying to any of my messages last night?"

"Oh, you did? I wasn't aware of receiving any that time," Sai answered, his face tilted upward in thought, his forefinger mildly scratching his chin in wonderment.

"Moron. You sent it all to me last night," Sasuke spoke for the first time since his arrival. He was leaning on one of the sound-proofed walls of the studio, hands deep inside his pant pockets as he looked at Naruto condescendingly.

"Eh? I did? Oops," Naruto smiled awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck as Sakura threw him a well-pronounced glare.

Sai chuckled. "You just wanted an alone time with Sakura."

"No I didn't!"

"Freudian slip," Sasuke stated while looking at Sakura, who flushed red at the obvious insinuation.

"Eh? Fried-what slip? Sakura…?" Naruto asked.

"It means you deliberately made the mistake without you being aware of it for selfish gain. In this case, you sent it to the wrong person so you guys end up with an alone time wimf eef mpf-" Sai finally stopped trying to finish his sentence. Sakura had her hand clamped to his mouth, her face contorted in anger, ready to do anything violent in case he pursued the case.

"Huh?" Naruto scratched his head in wonderment. His mouth was wide open as his face registered no understanding of Sai's explanation.

"Stupid!" She said with her head bowed. She spun and quickly headed for the door. Just as she was about to step out, a young man with short spiky hair blocked her from getting out.

She looked up to see the young owner of the studio standing in front of her. "M-Mister Yamato!" She acknowledged, backing inside the room with a couple of small, hurried steps.

"Hello Sakura," he greeted, his face crinkled in a smile that was more terrifying than pleasant. He seemed to notice Sakura's crestfallen face. "Oh? Why the glum look, Sakura? Did Naruto do something to you?" He asked, directing his gaze to the sweat dropping blonde sitting on the chair of the drum set.

Naruto visibly gulped stepping backwards as he inverted his gaze away from what he deemed as the 'creepy ghoul-eyed man' the first time he had set eyes on the guy.

Yamato chuckled. "I see Kakashi still isn't here," he stated, referring to a tall, silver-haired man that was the band's manager. "Naruto," he called out.

"Y-yes?"

"Call me when he gets here," he ordered, finally leaving the room.

"DUDE! That guy is just so creepy!" Naruto wailed as he grabbed Sai by the shoulders.

----

Hinata was browsing through a pile of small off-white envelopes, periodically opening one envelope, reading its contents and then occasionally writing on a sheet of paper beside the pile. She was doing this at a comfortably fast pace, until one envelope made her still when she encountered the name written on the invitation. She read through its contents and was surprised to see Sasuke Uchiha accept the dinner invitation. From experience, she knew he turned down dinner invitations that were more political in nature rather than business centered.

"Miss Hinata," a young woman dressed in common maid garb timidly spoke, her head poking inside the study room Hinata was currently residing. "Your father is requesting for your presence in his office."

Hinata was broken out of her reverie at the mention of her father, Hiashi Hyuuga. "Can you please tell Father that I will be with him in a few minutes?"

"Yes, Miss," the maid answered, closing the door with a soft click.

Knowing that her father did not like to be kept waiting, she made quick work of the remaining envelopes. She mentally took note of the number of accepted invitations and the important people who were coming, knowing her father was expecting a full report on the dinner party tomorrow. After finishing, she collected all the invitations and carefully put it inside the drawer of the desk. She took the paper containing the list of guests and started to go down two flights of stairs and walked towards her father's office situated on the ground floor of the mansion.

Upon arrival, she knocked twice before partially opening one of the dark double doors. "Father?" She asked with a break in her voice. Talking to her father had never been an easy task.

"Come in, Hinata."

She moved forward then proceeded to sit on one of the black leather chairs that faced the large desk her father owned. He had a newspaper covering his face as he spoke so she didn't have any idea what mood her father was currently in.

"How many?"

The harsh tone of his voice startled her, getting her out of her wits. The silence that met her led her father to lower the newspaper he was holding so that he could look at her questioningly.

"A… a hundred and thirty-seven, Father. I will be informing the caterers to prepare for a hundred and fifty heads, just in case."

Hiashi raised his brows slightly, clearly expecting more.

"Um… Gaara Sabaku has announced that he will be coming along with one escort, presumably Miss Temari Sabaku, his older sister. The Akimichis, Kuramas, Naras, Yamanakas, and Inuzukas are all coming for the dinner party. The Aburames are still out of the country," she listed verbally, mentioning the important people coming to the party.

"And…?" Hiashi put down the newspaper he was reading, resting his chin on the back of the palm of his hand which was now propped on the desk.

Hinata was stumped. She had no idea who else was worth mentioning to her father. She heard her father sigh, much to her dismay.

"The Uchiha," he hinted.

"S-Sasuke Uchiha?" She asked as her brows knitted, totally perplexed. She didn't think her father thought of Sasuke Uchiha as an 'important person'. His family used to be on her father's eyes but ever since that incident… her eyes dimmed a little. She knew her father still sent out invitations to the Uchihas, specifically Sasuke Uchiha, but she took that down to tradition.

"Unless Itachi Uchiha has suddenly gone back here without the knowledge of the whole country I don't think there are any other Uchihas worth mentioning, yes?"

She flushed red. "A-ah… The Uchihas – I mean… S-Sasuke Uchiha will be coming."

"Good," her father said, raising the newspaper to his face.

She took this as her dismissal and quietly left the room.

----

"Venganza?" Naruto asked while leaning on the computer monitor. "What kind of a stupid name is that?"

"Like yours is any better, Rahmen."

"Oh, yeah? At least mine's a level three _genin _already!"

"Dumbass." Sasuke muttered. He didn't bother to correct Naruto that his was a level five _genin_.

A box popped out of the bottom right corner of his screen, signaling that a player from his friends list had logged in.

"Sol? Who's Sol?" Naruto asked curiously, leaning further forward towards Sasuke's monitor.

A knot appeared on his temples. "Naruto get out of the way. You're assigned unit is over there," he pointed to a PC unit two chairs away from the one he was currently sitting on.

"Oh, but Sakura and Sai ain't there yet. Come on Sasuke. Spill! Who's Sol?"

"No one," he muttered.

"The guy's on your friend's list and you say no one? And look, he even typed a hello! Oh, he typed it twice now."

Naruto was once again starting to annoy him. Besides, who said Sol was a guy? Wait, what made him think Sol was _not_ a guy but in fact a girl, anyway? Just because someone had a female avatar doesn't mean that player is female. He mentally shuddered at the thought. _Damn Naruto for saying something sensible._ To think that he actually had an interest on the faceless girl. Wait… where did _that _come from? Just as he was about to tell Naruto to bugger off a rather loud voice interrupted him.

"OHHH! I cannot believe my luck at seeing such specimen of youth in this place filled with artificial nonsense!" A boy with black bowl-cut hair and extremely bushy brows announced with one hand on his waist and the other one pointing inside the room, particularly to where Naruto and Sasuke were residing.

"Lee, stop making a goddamn scene everywhere we go!" A brown-haired girl scolded him from behind, her twin buns of hair the only thing currently visible for the people inside the room. She intended to yank him away from the door but her hand slipped from the boy's rather shiny and clingy green shirt. She had exerted too much force on pulling the boy that she lost balance. She figured she'd be ending up sprawled on the floor. However, she was hovering mid-air with her arms clamped between to pair of elbows. She tilted her head up to see a raven-haired guy smiling at her, it wasn't one of those smiles that reached your eyes but it was a smile nonetheless. She blushed when she noticed the attractive features the guy possessed.

"You okay, Miss?"

"Tenten?" A familiar voice asked.

She tilted her head to see her friend, Sakura, holding on to a bag of groceries. Remembering that she was still being held by some guy, she stood up properly. Just as she was about to say something, her companion interrupted her with a loud outburst.

"SAKURA! I cannot believe my luck at seeing your loveliness, my dearest, most wonderful cherry blossom!" He proceeded to give her a hug.

"Lee, get off me!" Sakura's face contorted in anger, holding a hand to the boy's face, stopping his intention of hugging her which to her experience was rather constricting – as constricting as the shirt he currently had on. Or any other shirt he owned, really.

"But – but… my dear Sakura!" Tears pooled around Lee's eyes.

"Lee, stop molesting Sakura!" Tenten finally spoke, both her hands resting on her hips.

"Thanks, Tenten," Sakura told her friend gratefully as she saw Lee's shoulders droop in defeat. "Oh, Tenten, this is Sai by the way," she introduced as she put a hand on Sai's shoulder and smiled at the brown-haired girl. "He's our new bassist."

"Well, hello. The green goo behind you is Lee, by the way," She said, pointing a thumb at the dejected body of Lee lying on the ground.

"Oi, guys! What are you doing here?" Naruto asked after he stepped out of the room to investigate what the ruckus was all about after he heard Lee's voice.

Sasuke was trailing behind him, having left the PC after waiting for a few minutes for Sol to make a reply – not that she did. He grudgingly admitted to himself that he wanted Sol to be female. He leaned on the doorframe, showing his disinterest quite clearly to everyone.

"Well, we were supposed to meet with Neji here," Tenten answered. "He told me he wanted us to try out an online game he came across – Ninja I think was the title of the game."

"Really? Well me and Sakura and Sasuke and Sai are playing it right now! You guys gotta join us!"

"Well…" Tenten started doubtfully. She wasn't sure what reaction Neji's going to have when he learns they started without him.

"Do not worry, Tenten! I shall explain to my esteemed rival this grand – and if I might add – lucky situation we are currently in! Yosh!"

Tenten closed her eyes as she mentally banged her head on an imaginary wall a couple of times. She opened her eyes, remembering something. "You haven't by any chance seen Neji, have you, Sasuke? Since you go to the same school he does."

"No."

Tenten sighed dejectedly.

"Come on, Tenten, it's gonna be fun!" Naruto cheered, dragging her inside the room.

"Whoopee," she answered in a miserable voice.

----

Hinata was waiting for a reply from Venganza as she typed in her greetings. She was quite happy to see him online. However, some minutes have passed and there still wasn't any reply from him.

"Hinata?" A petite girl with hair similar to Neji's peeked into her bedroom. "Your _kimono_ for the party just arrived," she reported, opening the door wider and entered her older sister's room, carrying a large white box on her hands. "Where do you want me to put this?"

"Oh, um, just put it on my bed," she answered disinterestedly, her eyes not leaving the monitor in front of her.

"Who's that, Sis? Your boyfriend?" Unnoticed to her, her sister was now behind her chair, staring curiously at the screen, specifically, at the row of 'Venganza's that was clearly visible on the chat box.

"Wha- no!" She denied hotly, her eyes enlarging at the thought. She closed the chat box.

"You mean it's true?"

"Hanabi! Stop trying to put words in my mouth."

"But I wasn't. You're the one who's acting all guilty and stuff," she said defensively as her arms crossed in front of her, her right eyebrow raised in challenge.

She mentally groaned. She didn't want to argue with her ten-year-old sister right now. She wasn't in the mood. "I got the _kimono_," she stated while her eyes threw her younger sister a 'so-what-are-you-still-doing-here' look.

Hanabi smirked, her eyes glinting at the open chance to which Hinata had thought was a dismissal. "And we need to find out if it needs any last-minute alterations."

Hinata eyed her sister for the next few seconds. She sighed, signalling that she had given up. She stood and opened the white box on her bed. She spread the thin white paper out and picked up a purple-colored _kimono _inside. She tried it on. As she was adjusting it to fit her comfortably – Hanabi bombarded her with further insinuations on her so-called-boyfriend. She brushed it all off, not about to rise to the bait her younger sister was throwing.

"Have you met him? I guess not. I mean he could be like really old or something. What if he's like – as old as Father? And like… super ugly!"

Hinata gawked at her younger sister dazedly. "How did you ever get to that topic? Really, Hanabi. He's. Not. My. Boyfriend. So why should I care?"

"Suuuureeee," Hanabi taunted, tying a pale ochre obi on her sister's waist.

Hinata decided to ignore her. "It's a little long. I think we can cut off an inch on the hem," she stated. Her mind was working overtime, though, what with Hanabi putting bad ideas in her head. She decided to ignore that, too.

"Fine. Ignore everything I say!" Her younger sister huffed.

Hanabi threw imaginary daggers at her as she took off the _kimono _and folded it back into the box. She gave it silently on the identically silent fuming girl and watched her leave her room, her younger sister's chin jutted quite haughtily.

She sat tiredly on the computer chair. She activated her chat box and stared sadly at it. _Blank. _She clicked on the menu button to log off.

From Venganza: hey

Hinata felt her heart flutter on that simple statement. She smiled.

**Author's Notes**

I give a heap of thanks to my friend, kraynel (kraynel . deviantart . com) for providing a spark of inspiration in me for this story when he drew me a doodle of an adorable Sasuhina picture over my IM.

Thank you for viewing, for the support and for the past reviews. This story seems to be getting a lot of 'great' reviews, for that I am thankful. However, constructive inputs are more – no make that highly appreciated!

Tell me what you think of this chapter by dropping a review.


	4. Politics and Dinner

**Disclaimer:** Naruto characters are owned by Masashi Kishomoto and not me.

**Chapter 4 Politics and Dinner**

It was evening. The elite of the city were scattered around the vast, generously lit gardens of the Hyuuga mansion. A few of the guests opted to stay indoors to avoid the dry and unpleasant cold evening air as well as lap at the luxury inside – rich food included.

Sasuke Uchiha was one of them – but for reasons entirely different from everyone. He had his back on one of the walls of the reception area, the one that had only a very few people beside it. In fact, the people who were mingling in the area he was residing was close to none.

He had his hands inside the pant pockets of his black slacks. His face showed no emotion as he trained his eyes towards the stairs that curved up to the third floor of the mansion where a petite lady in bright purple _furisode_ was slowly and delicately descending. He watched her progress as she deftly maneuvered the long sleeves of her _kimono_, all the while keeping a small smile – forced he reflected most likely, judging from the stiffness of her painted lips.

She had finally reached the bottom of the stairs. All eyes were on her as she stood in beautiful splendor, scanning the area for something… or someone. He wouldn't have thought it possible for the young woman with a carefully made-up face and with hair deftly swept up in an elaborate bun, held together by seemingly expensive ornaments to be the shy Hinata. She took a hesitant step forward, one that led her away to where he currently resided. He watched her shoulders move up imperceptibly, to take a breath he surmised, as she made a few more little steps to a small crowd of people until she finally stopped.

He watched in continued silence as she gracefully bowed to a red-haired male that topped her by a few inches.

Gaara Sabaku – whose unusually red hair and highly unconventional but radical views of how things should be done earned him the title of the 'red-haired demon'. Previously known only as the long-departed governor's son, he was fast becoming a common sight in the political arena and the newspapers. Despite his tender age, he continuously proved to be extremely influential – making any politician he backed, even with minor association, win the so-called race. The youth loved him… and that part of the population was not something one would ever associate with the word miniscule.

He quirked his mouth at the display of familiarity between the two well-known teenagers.

Hiashi Hyuuga was clearly pairing the two who are commonly acknowledged to be among the most influential people in the room – no – the _country_. With the Hyuuga's backing, specifically the Hyuuga heiress', Gaara Sabaku would become a formidable opponent in the political ring when he becomes of legal age. He frowned derisively. What was it about people's thirst for power? Take his brother for example.

Sasuke's eyes darkened and unfocused as memories from less than three years ago reminded him of a smirking Itachi, his hands idly playing with a fountain pen as he sat, baring disgusted eyes on the two people that made it possible for both of them to live in this world. He scowled.

"Sasuke Uchiha," a deathly, pale-skinned man with straight, jet black hair and amber eyes called slowly, as if he was testing it on his tongue for the first time. He stood a few feet away from where the wall Sasuke was leaning on. He was one of the few people who attended the party wearing traditional _kimono,_ splashes of ruby red against the black outfit modernizing his look. "Still the same scowling person I met two years ago, I see," he commented, eyeing Sasuke with condescending amusement.

Sasuke could feel the hatred flowing through his veins when the man set his eyes on his. He felt as if his chest was about to burst from this as he glared coldly at the man whom the people called behind his back as 'the snake' – Orochimaru.

----

Hinata, who was unaccustomed to wearing high-platform _geta,_ accidentally stepped on her _furisode, _making her lose her balance for a second. She gratefully looked up at the person who had tightened his hold on her elbow when she tripped. She gave a small smile.

Gaara gave a quick nod to acknowledge her thanks, all the while loosening his hold on her elbow.

Their brief exchange didn't go unnoticed by the people inside, particularly to one Hiashi Hyuuga, who was currently standing on a makeshift bar holding a flute of champagne on his right hand as he shared idle chit-chat with his guests. He mentally took note of the envious gazes the power-hungry 'elite' were throwing at the young couple. He couldn't stop a satisfied smile at the looks on their faces.

"Is that Orochimaru that young Uchiha boy is talking to?"

Hiashi shot his gaze to the place where his companion pointed to. The 'young Uchiha boy', from the looks of it, was currently having a stilted conversation with the tall man. Based from the tell-tale sign of suppressed anger on Sasuke's face and the victorious smile of the infamous business man, he knew it was anything but friendly.

"Yes," he answered in a monotonous tone, training his eyes away from what he considered as a distasteful sight.

"Why the hell would that asshole need to talk to the Uchiha boy?" His companion spat.

Hiashi raised a brow. "Naturally he has every right to. Orochimaru is Sasuke's legal guardian," he supplied in the same monotonous tone.

The woman beside him choked on the alcohol she was currently swallowing. Her eyes smarted with tears as she felt a large amount of martini burn a straight path down her throat. She stared through chocolate-colored eyes filled with incredulity at the owner of the Hyuuga Eye Research Corporation. "You serious, Hiashi? Why the hell would Fugaku do that?! I doubt if even Mikoto would approve of leaving her son to Orochimaru – of all people," she stated with surety while pointing a thumb at the said nuisance, speaking of her late friends' supposed views on Orochimaru's guardianship.

"You've been gone too long, Tsume. Is that why your brat of a boy's behavior at school is considerably below average?" Hiashi taunted, referring to her son and heir, Kiba Inuzuka.

Her eyes narrowed down to slits. "Just because you own almost every goddamn mega establishment in Northern Japan, particularly JIS, doesn't mean you could pry into the school records of your friends' sons!" She admonished haughtily.

"Besides," she added, looking at her son on the other side of the room chatting with some of his friends. "I need to secure my US branch before I think of staying permanently here. Itachi Uchiha is really something to be reckoned with over there. Anyway," she looked at Hiashi with curiosity. "What is all _that_ about anyway?" She asked, pointing to Gaara and Hinata who were casually circling the area and exchanging polite conversation on the people inside the room. "Have you suddenly gone cuckoo and returned back to the previous millennium that we're now back to arranged marriages?"

"For a woman who is supposed to be highly educated, your choice of words appalls me, Tsume. Besides, I have not stated nor implied that there was any kind of agreement between the two."

----

"Hinata, you look so pretty!" Ino squealed and proceeded to tightly hug the petite girl.

"Oi! INO! What do you plan to do, strangle Hinata to death?" A smug-looking Kiba asked with his hands scrunched up inside the pockets of his black leather jacket.

Ino proceeded to glare at him. "Fuck off, Kiba!" She stuck her tongue out but she discreetly loosened her hold on the unresisting girl who was feeling strangled by the rather tight hug she received.

A boy, who also had his black hair tied up the same way as Ino's, opened his mouth but closed it again at the thought of giving out a long speech about young girls and vulgar words that aren't supposed to be a part of their vocabulary. _How troublesome._

All his friends, who were expecting him to speak, heard a long suffering sigh instead.

But of course it wasn't really Shikamaru Nara who uttered such a long and deep sigh – that was just too tiring for a lazy bum like he was. It was in fact, Temari Sabaku. She had been following her younger brother and Hinata ever since Hinata went down the grand staircase – which was some twenty minutes ago.

"I didn't order you to," Gaara said matter-of-factly, an answer to her unspoken complaint.

If looks could kill, Gaara would have been dead ten times over the way Temari was glaring at him. Her hand itched to grab her _tessen _that was currently hanging on her belt and do away with her rather overbearing brother. "I wasn't complaining."

"As good as," Gaara said while staring unseeing eyes at the crowd.

"He – Gaara will be fine, Miss Temari. I – Father won't let Gaara be harmed," Hinata assured the seething Temari hesitantly.

"_That_ is how you're supposed to act if a person graciously volunteers to protect you my dear, _sweet_ brother!"

Gaara's eyes narrowed but before he could even do or say anything Temari walked off, shouting 'SHIKAMARU!' when she became on level with him and proceeded to drag him by his elbow to some place away from them. His bewildered face turned to a very healthy mahogany-haired boy, croaking 'Cho-ji' as he asked for help.

Shikamaru shouldn't have bothered. The boy whose hair was sticking out all over his head wasn't even remotely looking his way, too busy to gaze lovingly at his clear bag of potato chips while eating it with maddening speed.

Kiba laughed aloud at the sight of Shikamaru being dragged caveman style on the floor. Ino stopped it by swatting a hand on the back of his head. "_Ino!_" Kiba warned while seething.

"Christ, Choji! You're in a dinner party and you bring your goddamn chips?" Ino, who was beside Choji, ranted behind him. "Can't you leave that _thing-_" this as she visibly shivered. "– on your car and try eating the hors d' oeuvres over there?" She requested, pointing to a passing waitress who had a tray of finger food.

"They look like pieces of rock," He stated as he glared at the tray filled with a heap of food that had a rocky texture. They were definitely not edible on his standards. However, he was also aware of the fact that his food supply was rapidly diminishing. But, he would die before he would eat one of _those_.

"Choji," Hinata called softly. Choji turned his head slightly to her direction, his pupils rested on the corner of his eyes, making it look like he was glaring evilly at the girl, which most probably he really was since Hinata was the hostess – and hostesses were the ones who _planned_ the food.

"I asked our chef to bake you crisp potatoes. Just as how they cook it in your house," Hinata continued with a little trepidation, not sure how Choji was going to take it. She motioned for one of the waitresses to fetch the baked potatoes.

"Y-you did?" Choji's eyes changed from previously narrowed slits to two large orbs, watery and shiny as he looked at Hinata transform from a normal girl to a white-winged angel. Everything around her whitened and sparkled until all he could see was her holding a plate of luscious, mouthwatering, steaming, thinly sliced baked potatoes and her uttering a loving 'here you are, my lord'.

"H-here you go, Choji," she muttered softly, extending her arms as far as it could go, not wanting to get close to the daydreaming boy as he looked dazedly at her in a not so pleasant way – to her at least.

"You spoil him, Hinata. How come he always gets what he wants while I never do?" Kiba complained, his arms crossing in front of him as he watched Choji excitedly grab the plate Hinata offered.

"He – Father doesn't like animals," Hinata stated while blushing. Her fingers started fidgeting with each other. "I'm sorry about not letting Akamaru in."

Ino smacked Kiba at the back of his head once more. "Stop complaining, Stupid!"

"Shit Ino, stop doing that!"

"Um… Ino, you're going to ruin your hair if you move too much. It's a sensitive hairstyle," Hinata reasoned softly.

"My god you're right, Hinata!" Ino turned to Kiba and glared at him. "Look what you made me almost do, Stupid!"

Gaara inwardly smiled. Nobody noticed the way Hinata was silently handling her small group of friends. She kept them all behaved like the children they really were without making them think she was controlling them. Even before the party, she had already notified her friends about his and her position during the event as to not cause any unpleasant reaction, as well as making them think how her father wanted them to think. Hiashi Hyuuga was right. She was born to be a leader – the subtle and kind-hearted type that everyone followed because they just couldn't resist it. It was silent... but effective nonetheless.

Of course, desirable trait as it is, it wasn't what the young man was interested in. He smirked inwardly.

Hinata, who was talking animatedly with her group of friends, noticed the way Gaara was silently appraising her. She felt unnerved so she asked him what was wrong but all she got as an answer was a negative shake of his head.

"I-uh… are you sure?"

"Yes…"

"Miss Hinata!"

Hinata turned, hearing someone from a distance call behind her. Just as she was about to make a full turn, she felt someone ram on her right side very hard, knocking her off her balance and made her tip back because of the high pair of _geta _she was wearing. If it wasn't for the tight grip someone had on her upper arm, she would have been sprawled on the floor inelegantly. Almost automatically, she issued an apology on her lips for obstructing the path of the person but she stopped midway to saying the first word as her breath caught painfully in her throat.

_Pain_. That was the first thing that registered on her mind on the scant seconds that she was able to gaze into Sasuke Uchiha's eyes. _Apprehension_. _Confusion_. _Anger. Hate._Those words swam through her mind as she deciphered the feelings behind his eyes that swirled and switched with amazing speed.

"Oh my god, Saasu-ke!" Ino reacted at the sight of her crush and started to walk his way. However, she stopped when she saw his eyes give her a well-pronounced glare.

Sasuke scowled. He immediately let go of Hinata's upper arm when he righted her balance and walked off without a backward glance. His steps were heavy and fast and his whole body was stiff as she saw him distance himself from the crowd and left for the direction of the gardens.

She bit her lip as she thought of the one person who could possibly get him in that mood. She checked on the area where she saw him last. She was right. Orochimaru was standing there and was watching Sasuke walk off. Her hands clenched into fists when she saw his face was filled with sinister amusement. She felt guilty at whatever had transpired between the two. This was all her fault.

"You don't need to act like the perfect hostess, Hinata," Gaara spoke softly as he lightly grabbed her elbow to stop her from following Sasuke outside.

Hinata didn't speak. She just looked at him with imploring eyes, asking to let her go. When he saw the determination there coupled with guilt, he let her. He shook his head in silence when he felt three pair of eyes look at Hinata then to him in curiosity.

----

"Sasuke."

He heard someone speak his name softly, hesitantly. He didn't bother to check who it was; he knew it was Hinata Hyuuga. They weren't close and they've only exchanged a few words since he met her. She was the only one he knew that had that kind of voice… small, soft, and always hesitant-sounding. He kept his eyes closed.

Hinata saw him stiffen at the sound of her voice. He didn't turn, so his back was still facing her. She bowed and started to wring her hands. She closed her eyes tightly. "I-Im sorry I didn't warn you that h-he… your guardian was coming. He – um – I… I should h-have warned you."

Silence met her so she kept talking, feeling nervous, afraid, and guilty at the same time. "You're my friend and… and I shouldn't have followed Fa- I mean I…"

"You shouldn't have followed your father's order? Shifting the blame to your father? Don't tell me you're washing your hands clean?"

She flinched and immediately opened her eyes when she heard that his voice sounded a little too close for comfort. She faced his mouth that was set in a grim straight line of which was also a foot away from her. She looked up to see his eyes had now directed his anger to her. "No! I-it's no… I'm not–" She stopped when she felt her throat had gone dry.

He relaxed – a little bit. "We're not really friends, Hinata. You needn't bother to do this." He was too tired with the confrontation with his bastard of a guardian to continue arguing with anyone.

Hinata flinched. It was wrong of her to assume that his relaxing meant he had accepted her apology. She took a deep breath. "O-of course we're friends! I–"

"Hinata?"

She immediately stopped upon hearing the interruption. She whipped her head to the source of the voice. "N-Neji!"

Her cousin was standing on the steps that led inside the mansion, his curious eyes staring avidly at the both of them. She saw Tenten behind him, waving a cautionary but friendly hand.

"Why are you guys outside?"

"I- we…" She didn't bother to continue. Sasuke had walked off.

* * *

**Author's Notes**

Thank you for viewing, for the support and for the past reviews. I've received helpful constructive inputs from the last chapter. Thank you for that, it helped a lot. If you've got more – don't hesitate to do so. It's not the reader's fault that they didn't correctly understand a story – it's the author's, in this case the authoress'!

Tell me what you think of this chapter by dropping a review.


	5. Protected

**Disclaimer:** Naruto characters are owned by Masashi Kishomoto and not me.

**Chapter 5 Protected**

The school bell rang, signaling the end to yet another class period to yet another school day. It was Monday, though, so that meant the students of this particular posh school were more tired than usual, having been kept up into the wee hours of the morning from late night parties and 'social' events. Never mind that they weren't even at the age where they could legally drink alcohol, it was obligation to just be_ there_, after all.

Hinata watched as most of her classmates stood up at the first ring, not even waiting for the teacher sitting on the desk to say a dismissal. She waited for the teacher to do so before she stood up, stifling a yawn as she did. She blinked a few times to spread the tears that pooled on her eyes but upon doing so her eyes smarted, as if her eyelids were burning her eyes.

"You okay?" A tall boy with dark hair and a pair of dark glasses spoke to her, looking down at Hinata at what could have been a disparaging gesture but knowing him, was actually a gesture of concern.

"Yes. Thank you, Shino," she smiled gratefully in response while she tried to remove the drowsiness she felt by rubbing a light hand over her eyes. "I'm glad you're back."

Shino nodded in response but said nothing.

"AAAHHHH! What the hell were our parents thinking, forgetting that their children had school and making us wait for them until 2:00 AM?! I feel so damn sleepy!" Kiba raised his arms over his head, stretching his back and releasing a loud yawn, mouth wide open.

"For once, I agree with you," Ino, whose head was currently resting on the arm rest with her arms dangling straight down the seat, said tiredly. She stifled a yawn with her eyes closed.

"And I thought _I _was lazy," a boy whose hair was tied drawled. His back was on the side of the classroom door, looking at the remaining students inside the room.

"You seem refreshed, Shikamaru. Had it early, hmm? Aw, poor you… Temari didn't treat you well last night?" Ino voiced with a trace of venom. She lifted her head up a bit and faced her head the other way, away from the door and once again closed her eyes.

Shikamaru's eyes narrowed in slight annoyance. But really, it was just _so _hot today he didn't bother to retaliate. But he will. One day. "So aren't you guys going to lunch?" He asked instead.

"Ah, man, I'd rather stay here and sleep through lunch!"

"But Kiba, you'd go hungry by the afternoon. We still have home economics today so…" Hinata's soft and small voice trailed off.

"Damn! 4:30 PM!" Kiba didn't relish the thought of sitting through home economics class feeling hungry. The teacher wasn't exactly nice… verging to military strict. And he hated how she always brought _dangos _with her whenever she taught, most often munching on said food rather than discussing the lesson.

"I'm on–" this as Ino stifled a yawn. "– a diet, anyway… that shouldn't be a problem with me. I'm gonna go sleep through lunch, too."

"Um… we could eat lunch here. I'll order take-out at the cafeteria with Shino," she suggested and looked at the aforementioned person.

Shino nodded.

"Really, Hinata? You're such an angel!" Kiba grabs Hinata's hand and gives her a friendly squeeze.

"Don't bother with mine, Hinata… oh, wait, you could buy me an apple. That might wake me up!"

Hinata and Shino went out of the classroom together. When she reached the door, she apologized to Shikamaru for making him wait. He waved it off, saying that he only takes about a third of an hour to finish his lunch. The three walked down the school corridor towards the school cafeteria. They were walking at a leisurely pace since the hall was almost deserted since lunch had already started more or less ten minutes ago; almost deserted because two people were currently standing on the lockers, one holding a paper while the other had his hands in his pant pockets, listening at the speaking boy. It was Gaara Sabaku and Sasuke Uchiha.

Her heart dropped at seeing the Uchiha standing there. She hid behind Shino, hoping against hope that the two conversing people didn't notice them… didn't notice _her_. Her breathing became labored as she remembered what happened just this morning – when she went straight to his homeroom upon arrival and stammered another apology for last night's mishap. He was just looking at her with expressionless eyes so she had no idea if her words even had an effect on him, or reached him somehow. The two glaring girls behind him wasn't much of a help either. She summoned one last apology before hurriedly turning her back on him to get back to her own homeroom, but not before she slammed herself pretty hard on Shikamaru who had just arrived. She would have been sprawled on the ground if it wasn't for his fast reflexes on an otherwise lazy body. Goodness, she must have been pretty red that time.

However, Gaara did notice her when there was a lull on the conversation between the two just as they were about to pass them. He called her when the three were on level with him.

"Your father invited me for dinner tonight. Could you tell him I won't be able to go?"

Three pairs of eyes looked at her expectantly; one didn't bother to look at her.

"S-sure," she answered with a bowed head. Her forefingers started to push against each other.

Shino noticed the gesture – and its significance. He stared at her, probably a set of twenty questions already formulated on his brain as he put two and two together when he also noticed Sasuke avoiding everyone's look. She hoped he wasn't making five out of it.

"Are you guys going to lunch or what?" Shikamaru asked the two.

Gaara looked at Sasuke. Sasuke shrugged, once again looking away at the group, his hands going deeper into his pant pockets.

"Let's go," Gaara told the group.

Gaara went alongside Shikamaru. He showed him the paper he was previously showing Sasuke and talked about it. Shino and Hinata followed with Sasuke trailing behind them. She felt uneasy as she walked; knowing that behind her was the boy she currently wanted to avoid at all costs.

When they arrived at the door of the cafeteria, almost all heads turned towards the group. Most did the staring discreetly, like the well-bred people they were supposed to be. A selected few did openly stare and they all had the same characteristics: predatory and female. Gaara Sabaku and Sasuke Uchiha were, after all, one of the hottest freshmen in school.

"Why does she get to be with the hot guys in school?" One girl cupped her hand and leaned on another girl beside her to whisper loudly from one of the predatory and female group.

"_Duuuhhh_! She's like the soon-to-be-richest-woman in the country! How can she be _not _liked?" The 'another' girl mimed to cupping her hand and whispered back loudly.

It was impossible for Hinata not to hear their so-called whispers. Heck, it was impossible for the whole group and the students within earshot not to hear their so-called whispers. She bowed her head to hide her flushed face and hid behind Shino, fingers fiddling with each other. Shikamaru rolled his eyes while the others took to walking ahead and ignore the whole thing.

"Hinata," Shino softly spoke as his hands lightly touched her arm.

She nodded and tried to give a small smile. She understood the silent gesture of concern. She took a deep breath and hoped that that would ease her feelings a bit.

They arrived at the line of display counters filled with food. There were still a few people queued up in front of them. Gaara and Shikamaru lined first. Shino lined next with Hinata and Sasuke behind him.

Hinata faltered on her steps. She was expecting Shino to let her go first but it was too late to ask him to switch places with him. That would have been too obvious for Sasuke. Her ears felt warm, she was sure they were already red with embarrassment. Shino gave her two trays. She hesitantly gave it to Sasuke, who in turn took it without as much as a nod.

In the middle of ordering the food from one of the cafeteria caterers, a girl cut in between her and Sasuke. She recognized it as the 'another' girl that had whispered snide remarks towards her. Come to think of it, she remembered the 'another' girl as one of the girls that had glared at her in Sasuke's homeroom. Not that she minded, really, if it meant making Sasuke more than an arm's length away from her. She guessed that didn't count at all because this girl also witnessed the silent treatment Sasuke had given her. How could she forget the look of catty satisfaction on the girl's face on the short span of time that she whirled around to head out of Sasuke's homeroom?

The girl was now holding a one-sided conversation with Sasuke, who put to staring at the food display more intently. She was flirting with him… putting on a sunny smile, eyes fluttering cutely. She shot off a topic about their class project, hoping that it would get her a reaction but still her 'prey' kept silent.

Hinata couldn't register in her mind on what the girl was saying even if she could clearly hear the constant blabber of the girl. She mentally shook her head, telling herself that she shouldn't give people who hurt other people the attention they don't deserve. She focused on ordering her, Kiba, and Ino's lunch meal. She asked for the viands on display and was just about to take the one she ordered on top of the counter when a thick glob, of what she identified as soup from the corner of her eyes, landed on her tray. Her forehead creased in confusion as she slowly turned her gaze to her right.

Her eyes grew big when she saw Sasuke holding the girl's left arm, the one that held a bowl of soup tipped to her side – which explained the spill on her tray. The girl had a shocked expression on her face and paled when he spoke.

She could barely discern the low and almost muted voice Sasuke used on the girl but she was sure he said _'don't do that.'_

Realization struck her as to what really happened or rather… what was supposed to happen, or at least, what _almost _happened. The girl wasn't there for Sasuke. Okay, so she probably was, she amended to herself, but her main objective was to hurt her. Her heart fell at that. She could feel tears pool around her eyes at the thought of someone hating her. She was about to turn away from them when she saw Sasuke go for her arm. She was going to evade his hand but her reaction was a little slow so she ended up being dragged rather forcefully by him out of the cafeteria. If she wasn't near to tears she would have seen the widely parted mouth of the female and predatory students as they stared at their retreating backs with jealous intensity.

"Don't you dare give in," Sasuke ordered brusquely, hands crossing in front of him when he stopped on a set of lockers and let go of her hand to face her but not staring at her eyes. "If you do then she wins even if it didn't happen exactly as she wanted."

"I-I'm s-s-sorry," Hinata stammered through a constricted throat, very much on the verge of tears. She clenched her fists, looked up, and breathed deeply, hoping that her actions would lessen the pain and stop the tears from spilling.

Sasuke waited silently as she composed herself for the next minute. He watched as he saw a little color come back to her face which had since paled while still inside the cafeteria – right after the stupid girl had almost spilled the soup on Hinata. "Let's go back," he said when he thought that she looked okay. He didn't grab her arm this time. In fact, he walked a few yards away from her with his hands inside his pant pockets.

Hinata nodded and followed behind. She touched the place where she still felt the impression of Sasuke's hand on her arm as he dragged her. Sure, she was almost humiliated a few minutes ago but she felt as if a large weight had been lifted off her shoulders. At least she knew now that he didn't hate her.

----

Hinata sat beside Tenten and Sakura on a wooden bench that rested near the school gates. On the grounds stood her two bestfriends Kiba and Shino, Lee, and Naruto. She was glad that she was almost back to her old routine just one week after the school vacation… which was to spend the remaining time before Neji gets out of his last class with Kiba and Shino. Today, the others were a plus – except for Tenten, who took to coming along with the two cousins some of the time when she got too lazy to commute home. Lee came with Tenten. As usual, Naruto and Sakura were waiting for Sasuke.

Naruto had opened the topic on the online game he was currently addicted to, which was 'Ninja'. Kiba and Naruto were currently in a fight as to whose character was stronger as soon as Naruto found out Kiba was already playing the game. There really wasn't anything to stop the two from arguing noisily with each other so Tenten and Sakura just sighed in exasperation while Hinata giggled softly at them. Sursprisingly, the two actually ended the argument faster than what the group had expected as they exchanged handles with promises of defeating each other in PVP. Lee's eyes were glinting at the display of such youthful determination in life to which the girls, Hinata excluded, rolled their eyes.

Hinata mentally took note of Naruto's handle – Rahmen.

"Come to think of it, I think we all should exchange handles so we can add each other up and get to talk to each other!" Sakura relayed her idea to the small group.

And so the small group exchanged their handles with promises of adding each other up that night. Sakura's eyes had twitched when she heard Lee's handle was SakurasNo1Love.

"Bugboy?!" Naruto said incredulously in response to knowing Shino's handle. He was about to laugh but Sakura shot him a rather deadly glare. He tried to swallow it down but he couldn't stop it from erupting.

If it weren't for his hood that he wore over his uniform, they would have seen the hint of red that appeared on the tall, poker-faced young man. "Remind me not to ask Kiba for favors ever again," He told Hinata as his hands balled inside the pockets of his coat.

She stifled a giggle, which eventually got Naruto's attention.

"How about you, Hinata, d'you play?" Naruto asked.

"M-me?" Hinata squeaked as she felt her heart hit her ribcage painfully. She really didn't want to let the others know that she was actually playing the game – more so letting Naruto know her handle. If he knew about it, then she wouldn't have the courage to try to get closer to him. She tried a couple of times but her courage almost always left her. She thought that maybe her staying hidden behind a monitor could up her courage a bit.

Before she could answer with an excuse, a scowling Neji appeared. When he concluded that Tenten and Hinata had seen him he proceeded to stalk off towards the waiting car without so much as a backward glance.

Hinata, who was glad that she was saved from answering due to Neji's arrival, thought otherwise when she saw Neji's scowl. She abruptly stood up and threw a hasty goodbye at the small group. She ran towards Neji.

"Know what, I think I should probably commute and leave you two alone," Tenten, who immediately noticed that Neji was in bad mood, said.

"Get in," Neji stated coldly at the two.

There was nothing the two could do against the cold force that was Neji. They scampered in getting inside the car. The driver started the car as soon as the car door was closed and went on their way.

Inside, Hinata shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She had the whole seat to herself on the side she was sitting on. Neji and Tenten sat on the seat parallel to her. She was face-to-face with Tenten but Tenten wasn't looking at her. She was gazing questioningly at her stoic boyfriend, who hadn't glanced at the two since entering the limousine. Finally giving-up on Neji giving her the attention she was silently willing he give her, she turned to Hinata.

_'What happened?' _Tenten mouthed the words rather than say it out loud.

Hinata's cheeks reddened. She knew exactly why her older cousin was giving her the silent treatment. She had refused to talk about what exactly happened between Sasuke Uchiha and her, preferring to keep it to herself for the meantime. Neji hadn't wanted any of that and told her bluntly about how he knew she had been starting to keep things from him. She felt guilty that Tenten got caught in the middle. _'I'm sorry,' _she mouthed back as she clamped her hands between her thighs and made a slight bow.

Tenten wasn't at all offended that Hinata didn't want to tell her what was wrong but she understood. She turned her gaze back to Neji, who still hadn't budged from his position. She sighed. Neji still hasn't come to terms that Hinata was actually growing up and wanted her own space. She couldn't completely blame Neji because even if he was Hinata's senior by just one year, his younger cousin still seemed to act like she needed to be given help on almost everything. But still, her boyfriend should start to realize that Hinatahas grown up and is actually trying her best to do things on her own and at her own pace.

She sighed again as she saw that the two Hyuugas weren't going to do anything about it. _This is gonna be one long ride home. _

**Author's Notes**

PVP – Player vs Player

Thank you for viewing, for the support and for the past reviews. So what do you think of this chapter? Tell me by dropping a review.


	6. Let the Games Begin!

**Disclaimer:** Naruto characters are owned by Masashi Kishomoto and not me.

**Chapter 6 Let the Games Begin**

_NOTICE: Good day, fellow ninjas! Three weeks from now, the first scheduled **Chuunin Exam** will commence. Promote yourself into a Chuunin-rank ninja to enjoy more perks and privileges as well as kick ass new skills!_

_NOTICE: The exam will start on Monday, 12:00 noon and will end Sunday 9:00PM. The first five days will be allotted for elimination while the remaining two days will be action-packed, player-versus-player duels! For more details, click here._

The message was exactly three weeks and four days old from when it was first aired publicly a couple of times to the Ninja players in game. It was exactly four hours since the official start of the _Chuunin_ exam. Game players were milling about the _Chuunin_ examiner NPC, Ibiki Morino, trying to get close enough to talk to him to start the exam. Naruto and Sakura, although having the same objective as the other players, were some steps away from the crowd – far enough that their constant chat won't register into their chat logs. They sat on the dusty road in front of the Ninja Academy where they first took the _Genin_ examination to play the game.

Sakura: what time did you say he was logging in again?  
Rahmen: uhhh… 2  
Sakura: and what time is it now?  
Rahmen: uhhh… 4  
Sakura: …  
XuanWu: hey guys!!!

Sakura saw a female ninja clad in a light-pink, short-sleeved top with a Chinese collar running towards them. The name of the ninja was familiar but she couldn't remember where she heard it before.

Rahmen: tenten?  
XuanWu: yep  
Sakura: oh  
Sakura: hey tenten  
You cannot invite XuanWu into the party.  
Sakura: you have a party already?  
XuanWu: me?  
XuanWu: oh yeah neji and lee  
Rahmen: so you guys gonna be taking the exam?  
Sakura: where are they?  
XuanWu: actually we finished the first part already  
XuanWu: neji and lee are out at the shops  
XuanWu: buying scrolls and stuff for the second part of the exam  
XuanWu is requesting to be your friend.

Sakura clicked on the 'Yes' option on the message box that popped up.

Request accepted.  
Rahmen: OH so you finished the forest of death quest already!  
XuanWu: um yeah i think that's what the quest was called  
Rahmen: man i wish sasuke was here already  
Rahmen: we should be collecting those 100 scrolls now to get to the main event  
Rahmen: not waiting for him :(  
XuanWu: wow naruto you sure do know a lot about this game  
Sakura: he knows more about this game than he does on school topics  
Rahmen: hey!  
XuanWu: ouch  
Sakura: heh :P  
Rahmen: well you're supposed to know this stuff if you wanna be hokage, you know!  
XuanWu: what's a hokage?  
Sakura: a ninja rank  
Rahmen: not just a ninja rank  
Rahmen: THE ninja rank  
Rahmen: imma gonna be the BEST ninja in konoha  
Sakura: oh boy…

Sakura rolled her eyes. Naruto was being – well… he was being Naruto. She mentally sighed. She wished he could set his priorities straight. Oh, yeah, and she wished Sasuke was here already.

Just then, a bell rang from her computer speaker, making a small box pop-up on her lower right screen, saying that Venganza had just logged in.

Rahmen: hes in!!  
Sakura: he's in!  
XuanWu: who's in?  
Rahmen: sasuke  
Rahmen: oh  
Rahmen: whered she go?!  
Sakura: i think she got DCed  
To Venganza: hey sasuke  
To Venganza: where you at?  
To Venganza: hi :D  
To Venganza: naruto's looking for you  
Rahmen: oi sakura, he says hes in the armor shop

_Figures that he wouldn't talk to me. _Sakura bit her lip, swallowing the urge to curse.

-----

_Greetings, fellow Ninja! _

_The first scheduled **Chuunin examination** is now open! If you received this message, then you are most likely **a level 30 (or above) genin**. Because of this, you are qualified to take the exam! No more jobs for scavenging items from lowly thugs and monsters. Get higher salary for taking C and B rank missions. Unlock chuunin-level quests and skills. Open yourself to new armors and weapons. So what are you waiting for, try out for the exam now! _

That was the greeting message Hinata received upon entering the three-dimensional world of Ninja.

From Venganza: party?

That was the first line that logged in her chat box after the greeting message. She smiled inwardly. For the past three weeks, though not necessarily everyday, she had been playing the game with Ven – a pet name she had adopted because she thought his long name had been a bother to type. Not that she uses it when she talked to him. She would have liked to call him by his real name, or even nickname at the least, however, the situation for asking hadn't arisen – that is – he hadn't asked for hers so she ended up not asking for his.

To Venganza: sure  
To Venganza: have you taken the chuunin exam?  
From Venganza: not yet  
From Venganza: join me?  
To Venganza: okay :D  
Your message has not been received.

Her brows furrowed in confusion. She was about to type another message into the chat box when a message popped out of the screen, telling her she had been disconnected from the server. She went back to the login screen but still, she couldn't connect. She bit her lip. Sure it was only a game, but she loathed to make people wait. _I should have taken his mobile number… _

She blushed at the thought.

-----

Rahmen: come on sasuke, lets take the test already  
Venganza: no  
Rahmen: why the hell not?!

_Yeah, Sasuke why the hell not?_ But of course, he had already planned to party with a certain online female friend that seemed to have just disappeared for quite a number minutes now, longer than the time she was online. If only he had a different source for contacting her. Scratch that. He didn't want to encourage any girl, even if she was someone he was _mildly _interested in. Still…

Venganza: then you go first  
Rahmen: we cant!  
Rahmen: i told you there has to be 3 of us to take the exam  
Venganza: i already have a party  
Rahmen: yeah… US!  
Venganza: that was before the 2 of you got DCed  
Rahmen: f-uck it sasuke, we got DCed for only 3 f-ing mins!  
From Sakura: who are you partying with sasuke?  
To Sakura: no one  
Rahmen: come on sasuke lets take the test its been 10 mins already!  
From Sakura: …  
Venganza: fine

Fifty heaven scrolls. Fifty earth scrolls. A calligraphy brush. The Forest of Death. An hour.

Scavenging. That seemed to sum up the whole quest. How _interesting_. Not.

As expected of a quest so trivial, it went smooth sailing afterwards. Immediately after talking to Ibiki Morino, Naruto seemed to have the natural aptitude at finding the required scavenged items, although Sasuke would never admit it and will probably put it down in his book as Naruto's lucky day. Now they had the fifty heaven scrolls and earth scrolls in their inventory – all they needed was a calligraphy brush.

Rahmen: the heck?!

Sasuke smirked behind his monitor. Now _this_ he might actually enjoy. A quest that actually _prohibits_ him from chatting with his teammates or any other characters except for the none playable, until he finished that part of the quest – which was to gather information on who took the Scroll of Seals, a collection of forbidden _jutsu _formerly housed within the _Hokage_'s study. In return was a calligraphy brush. How that was supposed to be reward he wouldn't even bother to find out.

Sakura: well okay so after we accept this we won't be able to talk to each other  
Venganza: tell us something we don't know  
Rahmen: bwahahawhahhaahaha!  
Sakura: shut up naruto!  
Rahmen: but im not talking  
Sakura: …

Sasuke revised his opinion into thinking that he would get less annoyed with hanging out with the two since he wouldn't be hearing their voices. This must be his punishment for that mistaken idea. He decided to play leader. He didn't really want to, but if it meant separating from this two, so be it.

Venganza: it took us 30 mins to finish the first part   
Venganza: let's allot 20 mins here so we could have 10 mins to finish everything up  
Venganza: so in 20 mins, no matter what happens, we'll meet here  
Sakura: sasuke that's brilliant!  
Rahmen: whats so brilliant about scheduling  
Sakura: shut up naruto!  
Rahmen: but im not even talking  
Sakura: grr  
Sakura: you know what i mean!!!  
Sakura: well guys, see ya in 20 mins!  
Sakura: naruto you better be here in 20 mins or i'm so gonna kick your ass!

----

After what Hinata thought was a million tries on logging in, she finally got connected. It had only been fifteen minutes since she got disconnected from the game, so she was hoping that Venganza was still there. She quickly opened her messenger and, very much aware of the fluttering of her heart upon reading the online status of her online friend, clicked on his name.

To Venganza: hi  
You cannot send Venganza a message at this time.  
To Venganza: hello?  
You cannot send Venganza a message at this time.

She thought of messaging another person. Mustering up all of her courage, she typed the name in.

To Rahmen: hi  
You cannot send Rahmen a message at this time.

That got her really disappointed. Maybe there was something wrong with her avatar, she thought silently. So, she randomly picked a player in her vicinity to verify her problem.

To xXxCl0udStr1fe15312xXx: hi  
From xXxCl0udStr1fe15312xXx: hi  
From xXxCl0udStr1fe15312xXx: where are you?  
From xXxCl0udStr1fe15312xXx: oh there you are  
From xXxCl0udStr1fe15312xXx: hey! are you really a girl?  
From xXxCl0udStr1fe15312xXx: asl plz

Okay, well that worked successfully. Too successful, she thought to herself as she included xXxCl0udStr1fe15312xXx in her block list. She sighed, her random clicking on the map echoing her mild dissatisfaction, her mind not even focusing much on the game.

K9: dam it where the hell is that bozo?!

That got her attention, quickly remembering that K9 was Kiba's handle in the game. She decided to stop and check out what he was up to. She ended up looking at two male avatars, one of them with a white puppy, standing on a lone armor shop. _Oh, Shino's here… _She giggled. _His avatar even looks like him! Well, minus the big coat. _

BugBoy: at ino's  
K9: what?  
BugBoy: he's at ino's place  
K9: wait… you knew that since when?  
BugBoy: I don't  
K9: …  
K9: dont say it like you know it!!  
BugBoy: …  
K9: darn it  
K9: then what the HELL are we supposed to do?!  
K9: we need 3 of us to take this dam exam  
K9: and its the last day for cryin out loud!  
BugBoy: there's always next month  
K9: NO FREAKIN WAY!  
K9: IM NOT GOING TO LOSE TO THAT MORON!

Knowing her best friend, he was referring to none other than Naruto. His trash talking didn't bother her, knowing that it was only friendly banter… and healthy competition. From what she had gathered on their conversation, they were in quite a predicament. She would have liked to help; in fact, she would have done it in a jiffy. But, there was still the matter of hiding her identity until she could establish a connection with him. But she hadn't been doing that at all, she thought guiltily. But this was an online game. Unless she would tell them directly that it was her, they wouldn't have any chance of knowing.

BugBoy: simmer down  
Sol: um…  
K9: no freakin way! dam it where the hells my cell  
K9: im gonna go call chouji  
Sol: you guys wanna party?  
BugBoy: kiba  
BugBoy: …  
BugBoy: sol  
Sol: yes?  
BugBoy: you asking us?  
Sol: um… yes!  
BugBoy is inviting you to join a party.  
You have accepted BugBoy's party invitation.  
Sol: thanks!  
Sol: um… are you sure it's okay with k9?  
Sol: i mean… weren't you guys waiting for someone?  
BugBoy: he won't come  
Sol: oh  
Sol: uh  
Sol: okay  
K9: he says hes not coming

Hinata giggled behind the monitor. She could vividly imagine Shino looking down on Kiba behind his shady glasses with his own version of an I-told-you-so look.

K9: and who the heck is this?  
Sol: um…  
BugBoy: our third member  
K9: HEY! are you really a girl?  
Sol: er…

_Was that the norm in an online game?_ She didn't know how to answer it so she kept silent. But then the place got too silent. Her brows knitted, thinking of a reason behind this. But then everything clicked into place. She smiled. There was a high chance that Shino was berating Kiba for acting that way.

Sol: hey guys?  
BugBoy: let's go  
K9: pfft…

-----

Sakura: that was harder than i thought!  
Rahmen: no way! that was a piece of cake!  
Sakura: you know… i AM kinda wondering how you got it right naruto  
Sakura: i mean… i needed a paper to get the facts right  
Sakura: and you were even the first one that got here  
Rahmen: oh!  
Rahmen: well i didnt leave the place  
Sakura: EH?! then what DID you do?  
Rahmen: well you know how in movies that the bad-looking guys are actually the good guys and those who look like angels actually ARE the bad guys?  
Sakura: uh… yeah?  
Rahmen: yeah well i chose mizuki coz he was like the most pathetic-looking

Sakura choked on the glass of mango juice she was currently drinking, almost dropping the glass on her computer. Sasuke choked on his own spit. The both of them thumped a fist to their chest a couple of times. If Naruto could have seen them now… Well, thank goodness he couldn't.

Rahmen: come on guys we still need to find the arena  
Sakura: yeah sure

And look for it they did. It didn't take long, since the NPC had hinted that it was the largest place on the map. The NPC hadn't been kidding, the building was colossal. The three went inside the arena. There, at the center of a white circular platform, stood a male avatar, a silver-haired broom-head with a mask covering the lower part of his face.

GM-Silver: Yo!  
GM-Silver: They say I have to fight with you guys.  
GM-Silver: If you beat me, I'll let you in the tournament for this weekend.

* * *

**Author's Notes**

DC - disconnect

I (actually) updated. Please don't hurt me. I had to rewrite the chapter outline a couple of times before I actually got satisfied with it. So how did this chapter go for you? Did it lack description or did it have too many dialogs? Give me your feedback by dropping a review.

My writing skills seem to be degenerating the more I write this type of chatting fiction. I hope you don't mind if I take a different style on the next few chapters? Nothing drastic, I promise. Kind of like dot-hack sign (as if they had a written novel but I hope you got my drift). Please check my profile for further updates.


End file.
